Pat Toomey (b. November 17, 1961) is a Republican member of the U.S. Senate from the state of Pennsylvania. Toomey was first elected to the Senate in 2010 and took office in January of 2011. His term will expire on January 3, 2017.

Based on analysis of multiple outside rankings, Toomey is one of the most reliable Republican votes, meaning he can be considered a safe vote for the Republican Party in Congress.

Toomey will come up for re-election in 2016. As of May 2013, he has already drawn a challenge from former Rep. Joe Sestak (D), whom Toomey defeated in the 2010 U.S. Senate general election. Sestak has filed his candidacy paperwork with the Federal Election Commission in order to pursue a re-match in 2016.[1]

Career

Below is an abbreviated outline of Toomey's academic, professional and political career:[2]

2011-2012

Issues

Specific votes

Fiscal Cliff

Toomey voted for the fiscal cliff compromise bill, which made permanent most of the Bush tax cuts originally passed in 2001 and 2003 while also raising tax rates on the highest income levels. The bill was passed in the Senate by a 89/8 vote on January 1, 2013.[5]

Expanded background checks on gun sales

On April 17, 2013, the U.S. Senate took a vote on and defeated a measure that would have expanded federal background checks for firearms purchases.[6] The vote was 54-46, with supporters falling six votes short of the required 60-vote threshold.[7] Toomey was one of the 4 Republican Senators who voted in favor of the measure.[8]

Co-sponsorship of expanded background checks amendment

Following Toomey's April 2013 co-sponsorship of a Senate Bill aimed at strengthening the federal background check policy for prospective gun owners, Quinnipiac University Polling Institute surveyed registered Pennsylvania voters on Toomey's Senate performance. Although the firearm control legislation was ultimately unsuccessful, the poll showed Toomey's job approval rating soaring to a record high level of 48 percent, with 30 percent of voters expressing disapproval. This is compared to Toomey's 11 point approval to disapproval differential (43-32) rating from the prior month.[9] Furthermore, voters from both major parties said they thought more favorably of him as a result of his bipartisan efforts on the issue of gun control by a margin of 54-12 percent.[10] The Quinnipiac poll surveyed 1,235 registered voters with a margin of error of +/- 2.8 percentage points.[9]

Drones filibuster

On March 6, 2013, Senator Rand Paul (R) led a 13-hour filibuster of President Obama's CIA Director nominee, John Brennan. Paul started the filibuster in order to highlight his concerns about the administration's drone policies. In particular, Paul said he was concerned about whether a drone could be used to kill an American citizen within the United States border without any due process involved. Paul and other civil liberties activists were critical of President Obama for not offering a clear response to the question. A total of 14 senators joined Paul in the filibuster -- 13 Republicans and one Democrat.[11][12][13]

Toomey was one of the 13 Republican senators who joined Paul in his filibuster.[14][15]

According to the website Breitbart, 30 Republican senators did not support the filibuster.[16][17]

The day after the filibuster, Attorney General Eric Holder sent a letter to Paul, responding to the filibuster. Holder wrote, "Does the president have the authority to use a weaponized drone to kill an American not engaged in combat on U.S. soil? The answer to that is no."[18]

Elections

2016

Toomey will next come up for re-election in 2016. The race drew an early challenger in May 2013 when former Rep. Joe Sestak (D), whom Toomey defeated in the 2010 U.S. Senate general election, announced he would pursue a re-match in 2016.[1]

Note: The polls above may not reflect all polls that have been conducted in this race. Those displayed are a random sampling chosen by Ballotpedia staff. If you would like to nominate another poll for inclusion in the table, send an email to editor@ballotpedia.org.

2010

On November 2, 2010, Pat Toomey won election to the United States Senate. He defeated Joe Sestak in the general election.[19]

U.S. Senate, Pennsylvania General Election, 2010

Party

Candidate

Vote %

Votes

Republican

Pat Toomey

51%

2,028,945

Democratic

Joe Sestak

49%

1,948,716

Total Votes

3,977,661

Full history

To view the full congressional electoral history for Patrick J. Toomey, click [show] to expand the section.

2002

On November 5, 2002, Patrick J. Toomey won re-election to the United States House. He defeated Edward J. O'Brien (D) and various write-in candidates in the general election.[20]

U.S. House, Pennsylvania District 15 General Election, 2002

Party

Candidate

Vote %

Votes

Republican

Patrick J. Toomeyincumbent

57.4%

98,493

Democratic

Edward J. O'Brien

42.6%

73,212

N/A

Write-in

0%

8

Total Votes

171,713

2000

On November 7, 2000, Pat Toomey won re-election to the United States House. He defeated Ed O'Brien (D) in the general election.[21]

U.S. House, Pennsylvania District 15 General Election, 2000

Party

Candidate

Vote %

Votes

Republican

Patrick J. Toomeyincumbent

53.3%

118,307

Democratic

Ed O'Brien

46.7%

103,864

Total Votes

222,171

1998

On November 3, 1998, Pat Toomey won election to the United States House. He defeated Roy C. Afflerbach (D) and various write-in candidates in the general election.[22]

U.S. House, Pennsylvania District 15 General Election, 1998

Party

Candidate

Vote %

Votes

Republican

Pat Toomey

55%

81,755

Democratic

Roy C. Afflerbach

45%

66,930

N/A

Write-in

0%

21

Total Votes

148,706

Campaign donors

Comprehensive donor information for Toomey is available dating back to 2002. Based on available campaign finance records, Toomey raised a total of $19,860,138 during that time period. This information was last updated on April 22, 2013.[23]

Lifetime voting record

According to the website GovTrack, Toomey missed 11 of 582 roll call votes between January 2011 and April 2013. This amounts to 1.9%, which is worse than the median of 1.7% among the lifetime records of senators currently serving as of March 2013.[27]

Congressional staff salaries

The website Legistorm compiles staff salary information for members of Congress. Toomey paid his congressional staff a total of $1,927,174 in 2011. He ranks 12th on the list of the lowest paid Republican senatorial staff salaries and ranks 14th overall of the lowest paid senatorial staff salaries in 2011. Overall, Pennsylvania ranks 5th in average salary for senatorial staff. The average U.S. Senate congressional staff was paid $2,529,141.70 in fiscal year 2011.[28]

Net worth

2011

Based on congressional financial disclosure forms and calculations made available by OpenSecrets.org, Toomey's net worth as of 2011 was estimated between $1,763,068 and $4,573,000. That averages to $3,168,034, which is lower than the average net worth of Republican senators in 2011 of $6,358,668. His average net worth decreased 2.54% from 2010.[29]

2010

Based on congressional financial disclosure forms and calculations made available by OpenSecrets.org, Toomey's net worth as of 2010 was estimated between $1,750,070 and $4,750,999. That averages to $3,250,534.50, which is lower than the average net worth of Republican senators in 2010 of $7,054,258.[30]

National Journal vote ratings

Each year National Journal publishes an analysis of how liberally or conservatively each member of Congress voted in the previous year. Click the link above for the full ratings of all members of Congress.